The invention pertains to cases for portable electronic devices to protect them against theft and loss.
Portable electronic devices, such as mobile phones (i.e. cell phones and smartphones), tablet computers and personal entertainment devices such as iPods, have become very popular and very compact, leading to many instances of theft and loss. Although protective cases for these devices are in common use, they typically provide protection against mechanical damage due to dropping, abrasion and impact, but no protection against loss, since the cases would simply be lost or stolen with the device.
Salentine et al., US 2003/0042348, discloses a retractable tether for use in conjunction with a personal communication device. The retractable tether has a housing and a mounting mechanism for mounting the tether to the user's body.
There is a need for a means of protecting portable electronic devices against theft and loss while still permitting convenient use of the devices, and without requiring a separate tethering apparatus.